Live Review: Paloma Faith, Joe Culpepper

As the usher guides us down the aisle toward our seats, the sound of Joe Culpepper’s voice immediately makes us wish we’d scoffed our pasta in even more of a hurry. Accompanied by an attentive guitarist, Culpepper has a soulful way about him and a natural energy that draws you in. That understated groove suggests fluid ability in the movement stakes also.

The intermission music has us jiving in our seats and culminates with Word Up by Cameo. It’s all good vibes in the audience and our neighbour points to a lady across the way, “Look at her fluffy jumper, it looks like a chook!”

The backing band enter the stage space first, sporting matching all-black finery and gold Lamé jackets. There’s even a double bass player! Then the backing vocalist enters, dressed in a gold Lamé dress, matching oversized bow and choosing to dispense with shoes, preferring bare feet. The audience initially mistake her for Paloma Faith and squeal with delight. Faith finally makes her entrance in a chocolate brown PVC skirt and cut-out bodice with feather shawl and killer skyscraper stilettos in matching hue. And, man, does she look like Billie Piper! She changes some lyrics to “Melbourne nights” and everyone cheers – why do people love being reminded what city they’re in so much? Faith says her backing band were scoping the venue earlier then returned backstage, announcing excitedly about tonight’s crowd, “They’re young!” They usually play for a lot of old folk back home, she explains.

“Even though there’s a seat there, doesn’t mean you have to use it,” Faith opines before reminding us that we outnumber security. That final octave jump in Leave While I’m Not Looking receives roars of approval; Faith’s powerhouse upper register not requiring her head voice. She ducks behind the piano to direct our focus toward the guitarists for their solo-off. Faith wanders up one aisle and down the other and then we’re all on our feet! Ike & Tina Turner’s River Deep – Mountain High gets an airing after Faith singles this song out as having influenced her next album. She scales the piano to belt out the end of Trouble With My Baby and her band is simply dynamite. Doing those energetic dance moves, Faith is almost as impressive as our Kylie. And then we score some Faith Philosophy: “We should do what ants do, which is help each other out.”

After negotiating those ridiculously high heels so well up to this point, Faith completely stacks it during Picking Up The Pieces. She finishes the song and then observes, “That was like Madonna at the Brit Awards,” going on to lament that headlines about Madge falling over stole the limelight from her own first-ever Brit Award win (Best British Female Solo Artist). Faith then leaves the stage, which is seemingly unexpected given the confused looks on her backing band’s faces as they follow her off stage. Hang on, we haven’t yet heard Only Love Can Hurt Like This!

Faith and co return and deliver a stellar version of aforementioned smash hit. She utilises very expressive arm movements and often incorporates literal gesture, trailing fingers up and down the inside of her arm to depict “burning hot through my veins”. After telling us she thinks Melbourne’s like “East London on the sea”, Faith says she’ll sign merch for 30 minutes only after the show, hilariously adding if we “can’t be fussed” to please not bother. Closing with Can’t Rely On You plus cowbell, Faith exudes star power.